I am writing this review to warn the public and to document a serious violation of my civil rights that occurred at the Petco in Milford, CT.
I was shopping in the store with my highly trained medical service dog when 2 male employees approached me and told me my dog had to be on a leash and wearing a vest or I would have to leave. I calmly explained that my dog is a legitimate service animal and that a leash interferes with her ability to perform her medical tasks.
He told me I was wrong, that “it’s the law,” and that store policy overrides this. That is completely false. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), service dogs are not required to be leashed if a leash interferes with their work, and they are not required to wear a vest or any identification. Store policy does not override federal law.
Despite remaining respectful and explaining the law, I was told I had to leave and he threatened to call the police.
I exited and then returned because I wanted to document what was happening. The original employees went into the office, and another employee came out. She contacted management, and only after the district manager looked up the ADA requirements did she return and admit that I was correct.
However, she told me she was instructed by the district manager to follow me around the store.
Being followed through a store because you are disabled and using a service dog is humiliating, discriminatory, and inappropriate. Would a business follow someone in a wheelchair through the aisles? Of course not. That instruction singled me out because of my disability and interfered with my service dog’s ability to focus on her job.
After I made it clear that this conduct was illegal and that I would seek legal counsel, I was finally told I could shop freely. She then went to inform all staff that I was “with a legitimate service dog,” effectively announcing my disability to the store. That was embarrassing, degrading, and completely unnecessary.
Under the ADA, employees are allowed to ask only two questions:
• Is the dog required because of a disability?
• What work or task is the dog trained to perform?
They are not allowed to require a leash or vest, threaten removal, call the police, follow a disabled customer, or disclose someone’s medical status.
This location demonstrated a serious lack of ADA training and basic respect. This was not just bad customer service — this was disability discrimination.
Petco corporate needs to address this immediately. No disabled person should ever be treated this way